Find an older message
- Open the conversation and choose Search from its menu or profile. On Telegram Desktop, use the search control within the chat.
- Enter a distinctive word or phrase. Where available, use the date control to jump to a day instead of scrolling through years of messages.
- For a photo, document or link, open the chat profile and check its shared media tabs.
If a conversation is missing, check archived chats and confirm that you are using the correct account. Ordinary cloud chats sync across your signed-in devices. Secret chats are tied to their devices and sessions; they do not appear automatically on a newly signed-in computer.
Export before deleting
In Telegram Desktop, open a chat’s menu and select Export chat history. Choose the content and format you need. The desktop app also offers a broader export of Telegram data in Settings → Advanced. Available choices and security confirmation steps are shown in the app.
HTML is useful for reading the saved conversation; JSON is intended for processing data. Store the export somewhere private and open it to check that the messages and files you need are present. An export is an offline copy, not a backup that Telegram promises to restore into your account. The mobile apps and the separate native macOS app do not have the same export interface.
Delete a message or conversation
Open the message or chat menu, choose the deletion action and read the confirmation carefully. In a one-to-one conversation, Telegram can offer deletion for both participants. In groups, what you can remove depends on ownership of the message and administrator permissions. Do not assume that the same option applies everywhere.
Deleting a conversation does not remove copies that another person has already saved outside Telegram. Conversely, an offline export you made remains on your device until you remove it yourself.
Cache and recovery
Clearing cached media frees device storage; it does not by itself delete the cloud conversation. Media that remains available in a cloud chat can be downloaded again. Logging out is different and loses secret chats associated with that session.
If history has been deleted, do not rely on a recovery bot. Check your own exports and legitimately saved files, or ask the other participant whether they still have a copy. Never give an alleged recovery service your login code or account password.
Sources and editorial review
Telegram Store editorial team. Reviewed on 11 September 2026 against the official sources linked above. Menu labels can differ by app version; this review does not include hands-on testing on every device.